The Circle: Introduce Yourself!

Joining us for One LibraryThing, One Book this month? Introduce yourself to your fellow readers here.

hi there. i am happy to join in on this read. i am glad you have chosen the circle as your 'one book' - it should prove for an interesting read and discussion, especially given our environment here on LT. i am a fan of dave eggers so i have been quite curious about his new novel. :)

How fortunate to stumble upon this thread! I'm Lynda and normally reside in the 75ers group.

I joined up on this because I happen to really enjoy Dave Eggers as well. I already have the book, so if I can find the time, I'll put in my two cents. I'm looking forward to seeing what he does with his dystopia. I've enjoyed some and been less thrilled with others, but I'm expecting good things from Dave.

Hello. I'm Kathie, and look forward to reading/discussing along.

Hi, gonna give this a try, I usually hate having to read a particular book whether or not I enjoy it, I don't like orders

Hi, Love the idea of discussing books - yeay, another bookclub!! Cheers all, Jenny

Hi, I'm looking forward to reading this with the group. It's not a book I would normally pick up, which is exactly what drove me to join this group read.

Hello, I'm Roberta. I've enjoyed the group reads I've done in the 75 Book Challenge and and 2013 Category Challenge. I missed the The Gulf Coast Reads in my area this year. They read The Dog Stars. I'm happy to make up for it with this read. Nice choice.

This is a first for me ~ the author and group reads. Sounds like fun.

I'm Suzie. I thoroughly enjoyed Eggers' Hologram for a King, so I'm really looking forward to chatting with a group about this Eggers book. I just got it on my Kindle and will start reading it this evening. "See" you all on the 19th of November.

I loved Egger's Zeitoun, the only book I've read by him so far, so am curious about whether I'll like this one.

("Loved" is not the appropriate word for a book about such a tragedy, but I found it enlightening and very well written, if so, so sad.)

My library already has long hold lists with few copies, so I may have to actually break down and buy this one (gasp). Or maybe I'll get very lucky and win one.

Not much to say about me, except that I have fairly eclectic reading taste and I love LT, am excited about the group read. I'm hoping it works out really well, although I'm sure it will need a few tweaks once we know what works and what doesn't.

I'm Chris. I'm a developer at LT. The "experienced" members around here probably know me well. Hopefully I'll have enough time away from coding to finish this book.

Hello I'm like
>6 pollysmith: in that I don't really like being told what to read but the book sounds good. Being in the UK I'll have to work out the time difference.

Hey all. Not sure that I'll be reading this particular book (my library has zero Eggers), but I like the concept, so I'll be watching! ;)

>14 RuthieD: 9pm Eastern = 2am GMT. Not such a conducive time for anyone outside the US. :|

KJ, here. I'm a librarian here, mostly working with LibraryThing for Libraries, and this book is definitely my type of read. Dystopias / the creeping sense of unease are always great in literature, I think. My copy is currently propping up a tea mug, but I'll get to it in early November.

This is Tim. I thought it was an interesting choice. I anticipate being irritated by Eggers' limited knowledge of computers. I've never read his novels, although I've enjoyed McSweeney's before. A friend of mine wrote for them--he's no longer in regular touch with Eggers, however, so he couldn't plead my interview case, alas.

I'll be audiobooking it. It's almost 14 hours, and I like to read something twice if I'm going to talk about it half-inteligently, so I'll be starting this weekend. I'm interested to see how it works in that format. Speculative fiction makes for great audiobooks--the experience is particularly immersive.(That is so long as the writing is good; I can't listen to bad writing in an audiobook at all.) But the lack of "distance" has an opposite effect on less immediate writing—it accentuates the artificial.

Hi, I'm Lois. I'm new to LT and have never participated in an online discussion before, so I'm excited. I'm a retired IT professional, so I will have to try hard not to be too skeptical if the author's computer knowledge is limited.

Hi, Matt here. I'm with LibraryThing's member support and social media. I've been a stranger to contemporary fiction for a while, and hope that the Circle will be a juicy novel to cut my teeth on. I did read yesterday that Eggers kept his contact with tech books and experts to a minimal, if at all, as he wrote the work; I'm interested in how he develops cultural critique ex nihilo, and what concepts he modifies and elaborates on from other dystopian landscapes. Will plunge in tomorrow!

This is Abby. I'm looking forward to reading it, it's the sort of book I would pick up anyway, so that's a bonus for me. I enjoyed A heartbreaking work of staggering genius once upon a time, though I assume this will be quite different...

Hi everyone! Most of you probably already know that I'm the new Member Support & Social Media Librarian here at LT. This will be my first Eggers reading, but I've had a number of my favorite bookfriends recommend his work to me before, so I'm excited!

I'm Matt from the Netherlands. I might be sitting this one out but (not sure I'll be able to get a copy in time), but if so I'll be lurking.

Hi, I'm Rosie. Looking forward to this group, and all the fun discussions that are sure to crop up.

Leah here. I spend most of my LT time now over in the 75ers group. I really loved Eggers' A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius when I read it years ago, but I've not gotten into anything else of his since, although many seem interesting. I don't know if I will get around to The Circle in time for the discussion because I live in podunkville, therefore the library doesn't have it, but it does sound intriguing. I will follow the discussion happily and hopefully participate if I snag a copy somehow.

Very excited about this new program at LT!

Looking forward to a bookclub like discussion, it's so hard to keep one going here in my small town.

Funny thing I was eyeing this book for an online library book discussion, now I wonder if I should. So much for trying to innovate!

Becky here. Reader, career bookseller, indie bookstore owner. I don't do terribly well with public reading, but really want to, so here I am.

Hi all, I'm Britt, I've been on librarything for a while now and have done some group reads in the past and really enjoyed them, so I figured I'd also give this a try.
I haven't read any Dave Eggers yet, but he has been recommended by others, so I guess it's about time I give him a try :)

Hello everyone. My name is Gary, and I am looking forward to reading and discussing this Dave Eggers book.

Hi! I'm Kendra & I'm looking forward to this new experience - new author for me, and first time participating in a group read.

Hi everyone. I'm Angie, this will be different from my usual reading, but, I'm willing to give it a go if I can get a copy in time. If not, then I'll be lurking to get everyone's perspective on the book. I think this Big Read idea is great.

I'm hoping to read the book if I get it in time. If not, I'll still follow the discussion.

I decided that I am going to join. I have not read any Dave Eggers' but have a couple of them on my shelves. Like others above I guess it is time for me to read my first. I have heard others speak highly of his work so no time like the present to do something different.

I am a librarian and have been doing librarything for years. I have participated in other group reads - and can say that some go better than others, but in general it is fun to talk about books with other people.

I got my copy today and I'm really looking forward to reading it. Have to finish my current reads and hopefully get to it around the first of the month. It wasn't really on my list, but it seems right up my alley. I'm glad Tim selected it!

I am a reader who loves to do challenges and share my reading experience with others, so when I saw this opportunity to jump in, I couldn't say no. Haven't gotten a copy yet and my only real chance is to get one of the ER books, so here's hoping! Even if I can't do this book, I will happily join in on the others. :)

Currently I am completing 9 challenges a month, but I think I can squeeze this group in, if given the chance. :)

I just downloaded the book this morning. This will be the first time that I have participated in a group read. I look forward to the shared experience with you.

Hi, I'm Milda. I haven't been on LT much this year but wow, so excited to log in yesterday and see there's a new Dave Eggers book!

I've been trying to scale back my time on computer/social media to avoid the time-suck that keeps me away from actually reading a book. Kinda ironic that a book with this subject matter might pull me back on to the internets for book chat.

However: not sure my heart can take it if discussion of this book goes mean on Dave Eggers or happens to discourage anybody from reading his others. I adore Dave Eggers. Heartbreaking Work and Zeitoun were incredible. Fingers crossed that this one is amazing too.

re: #37: "However: not sure my heart can take it if discussion of this book goes mean on Dave Eggers or happens to discourage anybody from reading his others. I adore Dave Eggers."

hi milda!! ME TOO!! haha. though, over the years, i have come to understand that eggers is not for everyone, my love for him/his writing abides. i am also a big fan of his wife, vendela vida. i thought her novel let the northern lights erase your name to be amazing. they're such an accomplished couple with their writing, foundation work (826 national) mcsweeney's and the believer. i feel like such a slacker. ;)

Hello! I am hoping that I get a hold of The Circle before November 19th but I will read it no matter when I get it so that I have been a part of the One Librarything movement.

My copy arrived on Saturday and I catalogued it today. I would not have bought this book without the imperative of this reading group. Indeed, I may not have read it at all unless it got positive comments from my library customers and that will not happen for months because we do not even have copies in stock yet. I loved A heartbreaking work of staggering genius but have yet to read any others of Eggers' works.

Hi, I'm Becca. I've placed a hold on this at my library so hopefully I'll have it within a couple weeks and can join the book read before it's over. The summary looks interesting, and I loved A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius :)

I'm Jo. I've given in and ordered a copy from my local bookshop. Weirdly it was cheaper to have it delivered than collect in store. Should be with me in about a week. I've never read anything by this author before. And I've never been in a group read before either (real life or internet). I'm really looking forward to it.

Hello everyone. This is my first book club, and I'm also not very familiar with communicating with people on line so I look very forward to this brain-stretching. I am glad this book was chosen and look forward to beginning to read it. I probably wouldn't have picked it up to read right now if not for the club...but then I hadn't made the connection that this same author wrote Zeitoun. I ended up being very glad that I read Zeitoun.

Looking forward to talking with all of you about the book!

I just got the book and I'm looking forward to reading it though I am in the middle of another at the moment. So, I'm hoping I will have time to finish before the target date. Giving it a shot anyway.

Great idea! Especially since I finished this book a week ago.

Sixty-something English teacher in the Midwest.

Hi--I'm Laura and I love LibraryThing. I always do One Book One San Diego, so I think I'll try to join this One Book discussion as well!!!!!

Hi - I'm a librarian, and usually *run* bookclubs, so I'm looking forward to only being a participant this time (and not having to come up with the discussion questions...) Looking forward to reading the book!

Hi – I’m Pavel, I’m from Moscow, Russia, and I am quite new here at LibraryThing (registered just a month ago). I have decided to use LibraryThing to make my home library in order (and to make some order in my mind too :) ). I’ve decided to participate in “One LibraryThing, One book” first of all because I liked this idea in general – when many people are reading the same book at the same time and share their expressions and opinions. I have never heard about the author, but after reading the free trial part of it in Amazon, I decided to buy a copy. I had the only option to buy the eBook version of it (for Kindle) as the book is not yet in the shops here.

I'm a big Dave Eggers fan so I am excited to read his latest. I'm also a newbie to the book club scene!

Hi all. I'm Lynn. It's proven to be great fun so far reading the posts here as well as in the first impressions thread. Great choice for the first club group read!

I'm Cheryl and I've never participated in a group read before, but The Circle was on my wishlist already so I'm giving it a try.

Hello, I'm Helen. Used never to be without a book on the go but got out of the habit of reading for pleasure whilst studying for a degree. The Circle was the first title of 6 that I'm hoping will get me back into the habit. Looking forward to discussing it with you!

I'm emmaliminal and I've never done a book club before unless you count college seminars, but I'm looking forward to this one. I'm currently looking for a job in social media, so I would be reading this book for "professional" reasons no matter what. I've actually finished it now and am bursting to talk about it so would November 18 hurry up, please?

ETA correct date.

Hi
I'm Nancy and I started reading this book yesterday on a plane from Seattle to Philadelphia, continued it from Philadelphia to Palm Beach, and then stayed up last night reading it until I dropped. I'm looking forward to sharing in the discussion!

Hi everyone! My name is Wendy and I am new to Eggers work as quite a few people seem to be. The Circle sounds very intriguing. My participation in the group will hinge on the luck of the local library hold list and whether I can get the book and have enough time to finish it before the discussion starts.

Hi, I'm Matt. I started reading the book yesterday after it showed up at my doorstep (one of the ten coveted Early Reviewer copies--thanks, LT!). I've enjoyed some of Eggers' other writing, but so far I'm a little mixed on The Circle. Only a hundred or so pages in though, so we'll see...

Hi, I'm Kristine. This is my first foray into a social media book club, but I have done the 'one book' concept locally before through the San Mateo County Reads series. Coincidentally, the first 'read' I participated in was for Dave Eggars' book, "What Is The What". The cap-off to the event was a free public lecture where both Eggars and that book's protagonist, Valetino Achak Deng, were interviewed by KQED's Michael Krasny. I loved the book and Eggars was extremely affable and impressive in person. Afterwards, I tried "Heartbreaking Work..." but lost interest half-way through. Since, I have good intentions to read his other books, but can never seem to work up the enthusiasm to start them. I think this is because he so over-exposed, such a media darling here in the Bay Area. But I don't think I've been giving him a fair shake, so I interested to join in this read and hear everyone else's impressions. Also the setting for this one is my backyard, so I think I will like that.

Hi I'm Cue. I'm trying to get back into the swing of LT: it has been a while since I've sat down with my books and relaxed. I found this site group when I was entering the book into my library. I finished it about an hour ago. So hopefully I'll be logged in for the discussion!

Hey, everyone. I'm Mamzel and I've just started The Circle. I had put a hold on the library but the queue was too long so I went ahead and bought it for my Kindle. It's nice to see so many LT staff here in the trenches with us.

Hello - I'm Karin. I don't know if I'll get my copy in time to read it for 18th, but I'm looking forward to the discussions. I've never read anything by Dave Eggars before, but as my son has just got a job as a 'Social Media and Database Assistant' for a PR firm it's of topical interest to me.

I've been on LT for a little while now. I mostly read genre fiction - SF, fantasy, crime and thrillers, all of which I've been reviewing for the last few years. I've never read or even heard of eggers before. but Was lucky in the UK ER for this one, and am looking froward to something a little bit different to my normal fare. I've not looked into any of the background to this so it will come completely new to me without any preconceptions. Not sure I'll have recieved it and read it by the 18th though!

Hi, I'm foggidawn, and I've been on LT almost 7 years now. I've done smaller group reads, and am looking forward to this big one. The Circle is a book I might not otherwise have picked up, but I am a little ways into it and enjoying it so far.

Great to see you Foggi.

I'm Laurel and am about 100 pages into the book. It's easy reading and I think I'll get through this one quickly. Interesting so far.

Pure coincidence that I just bought this book and today just noticed this on my home page. So, count me in!

I'm Carol and I've been around for 5 years, haven't been as participatory for a few years due to family commitments but hoping to be more involved and this seems like a great way to dive back in!

Hi, I'm Matt. I've been a member here for years, mostly quiet, but exited to participate in this discussion. I've been a Dave Eggers fan since A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and have followed his literary path closely. This book seems a bit of an exception for him, more brainy thriller than serious literature.

I'm half-way through and struggling to stay engaged. Part of my problem is that I'm listening to it (I love Audible) and I don't feel the reader is doing the best job, but that might just be me. As we dive into this, I'd be interested in hearing what other *listeners* have to say about the recording, just as an off-shoot to the general discussion.

I'm participating here because it's an LT site wide thing, I felt engaged enough and curious enough to try to obtain the book somehow, and I enjoy the discussion and the deeper understanding of it all.
I'm not a sophisticated reader. But I like to learn, and understand. The deeper meanings of things often pass me by. The discussions and reviews help with this.

Count me in. I read Eggers's memoir back in 2001 and I am now heartbroken at the staggering realization (not to mention staggered by the heartbreaking realization) that, although it resulted in my holding this author in very high regard, I now remember very little about the book itself. (Sigh.) At any rate, I look forward to this collective coexperience (however much it might amplify the book's theme). Silent out.

>66 invisiblelizard:

Welcome aboard! We have a few listeners, so you shouldn't be alone on that front. I've been reading, and quickly at that, so I'll be interested in what all the listeners have to say about the experience.

Just read the first 70 or so pages and am looking forward to this discussion. Slightly ironic but I could not figure out where I had seen an online ad for a book club for this book. Was it my local library or /r/books, took me a little while but glad I finally figured it out!

I'm a Laurel, too, (hi, bayleaf!). I'm about half way through the book. I really love how meta this will be, talking about this book via my laptop screen.

I'm Tricia and I've been on LibraryThing for quite a while. Just finished The Circle yesterday and looking forward to seeing how the discussion progresses.

Introduce myself? That's just what the Circle would want me to do, isn't it? Forget it!

(smile)

> 73 Ooh, burn! Well said.

I'm Stacie, and I didn't think I'd get the book from the library in time to read it before the discussion. Then I got it and read it in less than 48 hours. So here I am!

Still not arrived.... I may join in the discussions somewhat later...

Hi,

I am krazy4katz. I have been away from LT for a while and thought this might be a good way to re-enter the social side. I just started the book 2 days ago, though, so I may be behind. This would be nothing new, of course. I am pretty much always behind.

This will be my first Eggers book. I will be interested to hear from people who have read other works of his whether you think The Circle is representative of his writing in general.

Best wishes,

k4k

I'm Barbara and I was a little paranoid before I read this book. Glad to have a discussion here with fellow LTers.

Hi

I'm Beverly. I know I am late joining this group (not sure how I miss the announcement). The Circle has been on my list to read and will try to read this weekend and see if I can catch up. :)

Hi Beverly. Welcome, and I hope you enjoy the book!

Hi

I am Barb. Read the book last month-interested in discussing it. Love LT!

Hey Barb. Discussion is to some extent winding down--or so it seems. But your thrughts on the threads will, I'm sure, be welcomed, and may reignite things.

Sorry to hear that things are winding down Tim. I was one of the people lucky enough to win one of the UK ER copies but it still hasn't arrived. Oh well I'm sure that I will at least read the threads when I have received and read it.

Maybe once the UK people get their copies, the discussion will pick up again. Right now, I don't know that I have anything more to say that other people haven't already said better.

I'm still paying attention and might have more to say, but I don't have time to say it. Maybe over the weekend.

Oh, I think a lot of people are paying attention.

I'm still reading the threads and look forward to seeing what new things get brought out as others finish the book and start talking about it. I still think about the book often and wonder things about it...the current wonder being whether we'd all be talking about it more if it hadn't made us a bit uncomfortable. I mean, a book about the perils of social media being discussed in our happy comfy social media place.

When wandering around Library Thing tonight I stumbled across a Talk topic on nothing more than how many people were currently on the site. It was something like 46 pages (not sure of the technical term) long. It started a few years ago. Based on that, I am guessing we won't be done talking about this controversial, thought-provoking book before the rest of our group finishes reading it in a couple of weeks.

By the way, there's 85 members on the site right now. I'd go put it on that Talk thread, but have no idea how to get back to it.

88: Job, Thanksgiving, SantaThing, entering Little Free Library data, catching up with book reviews, not willing to devote my entire life to LibraryThing, reading comments and writing responses is time consuming, don’t consider the book worth the trouble when other tasks are more pressing...

#88
Got a good laugh out of your comments and think that perhaps they may be on target. This site might be about books but it is very much a social media site as well.

>90 benitastrnad: so true!

As usual, I'm so out of sync that the party has moved on by the time I get there - one of my local libraries just called to say my book on hold was available for pickup. Happily, the book still interests me after the wait. I think I'll read it before delving further into all the posts on the book. I look forward to reading the discussions afterwards, even if they are old news to everyone else by then.

I was a bit late to the party, so I will be looking for your comments! k4k

I'm still catching up with the discussion threads so I may see you over there...

Finally arived and read . My review - before I read the discussion threads - is
here